Arthur Veis, ’51 PhD, professor emeritus, died on Sunday, April 24, 2023. He was born in 1925, served in the U.S. Navy in WWII and enrolled in the Department of Chemistry at Northwestern University, where he earned a PhD with Irving Klotz. He was actively engaged in science until very recently. Veis, known as “Art” by his colleagues, is widely recognized for his scientific achievements in several disciplines. His first major contributions were in elucidating the molecular structure of Type I collagen fibrils. In recent years he turned his interests to the topic of biomineralization, a field he helped create. He was never afraid to try new techniques and approaches. These often produced remarkable insights still cited in the literature. As one colleague said, “Art stood head and shoulders above his contemporaries, typically those with loud voices and sharp elbows.” In addition to his formidable abilities as an investigator and organizer, Veis was always a very welcoming, supportive, and positive person. He was an active mentor, having educated many PhD students and post-docs. At his 90th birthday party in 2015, dozens of former colleagues traveled to celebrate with him and many, many more from abroad sent warm greetings.
This tribute was written by Veis’s colleagues in the Department of Cell and Developmental Biology Stuart Stock, PhD, and Alvin Telser, PhD.
